Take a Trip to Pollack Tempe Cinemas

Who doesn’t love going to the movies? It’s an event the whole family can enjoy. It’s a time when you can escape for 90 minutes into someone else’s adventure as you sit back and enjoy the cinema seating, delicious theater popcorn and amazing digital videos on huge screens.

My love for the movies started as a small child when my parents would take me to see Disney movies. Back then, an animated cartoon was shown before the featured film and a Holloway Slo-Poke sucker lasted through the whole movie.

Things have definitely changed; in fact, there’s a movie theater in Tempe, on the southeast corner of Elliot and McClintock, that’s taken the discount movie theater into a category all of its own. Michael Pollack, founder of Michael A. Pollack Real Estate Investments, went the extra mile in 1999, when he purchased the center and transformed this former movie theater into Pollack Tempe Cinemas. Not only do you get to enjoy a recent Hollywood second-run movie, but you also step into a world of movie memorabilia. There are Hollywood props; life-size figures of Hollywood’s favorite celebrities, characters and presidents; autographed photos of iconic stars; animated RaggMuffins of Rock, with digitized music playing in the front lobby; a video arcade; an exhibit of the Pirates of the Caribbean; and much, much more. Pollack didn’t miss a beat –in 2014, he invested more than $800,000 for new carpet throughout the cinema, state-of-the-art digital movie projectors, surround sound systems and new reclining theater seats in all of the theaters.

Too Good To Be True

The unbelievable part is there’s no extra charge for the exhibits as this discount movie theater allows you and your family to spend the afternoon or evening watching a movie and enjoying the arcades and displays for as little as $3 a ticket, and only $2 on Tuesdays. Almost everything found in the concession stands, including the “best tasting popcorn,” cost less than other movie theaters. Pollack Tempe Cinemas shows 10 to 12 movies in the six theaters alternating times each day.

Pollack built his career in commercial real estate starting in 1973, when he was just out of high school. He transforms tired shopping centers into modern shopping plazas. He has received enormous recognition through the years from the surrounding cities and dignitaries for the revitalization efforts in beautifying, enhancing and enriching the quality of these communities and the lives of those that live there. In fact, he’s been called the “plastic surgeon” of real estate having renovated more than 12 million square feet in his career.

“I breathe life back into older buildings and communities,” states Pollack.

Giving Back

When Pollack purchased Royal Palm Plaza, where the movie theater is located, he had to decide whether to keep the theater or convert the 25,000-square-foot space with sloped floors into a usable retail space. So, his keen, creative business mind started working and he realized this would be the perfect venue to display some of his collectibles that he’s been collecting for over 40 years and share them with the community. One thing led to another, life-like statutes were purchased from around the world and added to his collection. Other movie memorabilia was acquired and the theater became a small museum itself with hundreds of movie props being rotated to complement the featured movies. Pollack finds pleasure in searching for new additions of memorabilia and icons from current movies and adding them to his current collection. His most recent additions are Rocket from the Guardians of the Galaxy movie and Tony Stark from Iron Man.

He started collecting 3D advertising memorabilia at the age of 14 and it has grown into the largest private collection of its kind in the world with 8,000+ pieces, some of the oldest dating back to the late 1700s. This collection is tightly secured in a museum located in the Pollack Real Estate Investment corporate offices in Mesa along with hundreds of antique collectible slot machines and a huge lunch box collection. Gracing the walls at his corporate headquarters is a photo gallery of before and after photos capturing the many shopping center building transformations he has redeveloped throughout greater metropolitan Phoenix.

Pollack doesn’t do anything half way. His philosophy is, “Do it right, or don’t do it at all!” He carries the same enthusiasm over to his involvement in charity fund raising events throughout Arizona. He and his band, Corporate Affair, play for charity events and perform at the annual Phoenix Light Parade and Tempe Parade of Lights, where they play live music while riding in one of his two LED lighted train floats. Pollack, an avid drummer says it’s truly been a labor of love for him combining his passion for business with his hobbies.

So, plan a date with family and friends to catch a movie at Pollack Tempe Cinemas and enjoy the experience of thWho doesn’t love going to the movies? It’s an event the whole family can enjoy. It’s a time when you can escape for 90 minutes into someone else’s adventure as you sit back and enjoy the cinema seating, delicious theater popcorn and amazing digital videos on huge screens.is themed movie theater. You might even find Pollack one weekend night meeting, greeting and shaking hands with the movie goers. It definitely is an affordable, fun time for all ages!